Take His Hand
by whovianfangirl
Summary: Armin is being bullied, and a boy named Eren saves him.


_Take His Hand_

_One-Shot_

Armin Arlert was always a shy, sweet type of boy. Sadly, this made him a target for bullying. He was often picked on and beat up by older, bigger boys who did it for kicks.  
>He usually just sat around, absorbed in his books, and ignored the people and boring world around him. When they invaded his little world, he could not fight back.<br>He was little, and considered weak even by his family. But Armin's strength was in his mind. He was smart, and that was his greatest asset.

He was also a coward. Armin's knees shook when he was faced with danger, and he never had anyone to help him. Until he met Eren and Mikasa.  
>Armin met Eren first, while he was getting beat up.<p>

"Hey, Armlenea!" He older boys had started calling him that, because of his long blonde hair and his sparkly blue eyes. "Whatcha doin'? Reading those stupid  
>books again?" They had found his most recent hiding spot, under the bridge on the other side of the town.<p>

"Y-Yes..." He mumbled, pulling the dark volume closer to his face. "And s-stop calling me that..."

"What?" One of the boys yelled as he put his hand up to his ear. "I can't hear you! Speak up!" He taunted, and the two other boys snickered behind him.

"P-Please, just go away..."

The brunette boy grinned evilly and snatched the book from under Armin's nose.

"What is this junk anyway?" He flipped the book open and scanned the pages with a grimace. "It's all words!" The three of them laughed together and tossed the old volume  
>aside, and it landed in the mud.<p>

"No!" Armin shrieked, and when he jumped up a fist slammed down into his stomach. He gasped, pain shooting up his chest.

They laughed as Armin stumbled back, clutching his stomach, only to be knocked back again and again. Armin willed his body to fight back, but he was numb. Slowly the  
>punches and kicks hurt less and less until they were just dull aches. Armin was on the ground, curled up tight. In all the choas and numbness, he managed to grab the<br>muddy old book. Armin clutched it to his chest and closed his eyes. Maybe they would stop...maybe they would stop if he just let them.

"Hey! Stop it!" A new voice pierced Armin's ears. "Leave him alone!"

He did not look up, but he heard the lead bully say,

"Who's this shrimp? You gonna make us?"

Armin heard fists meeting clothed flesh, (he knew the sound well), and the sound of receding footsteps.

"Are you okay?"

He opened his eyes. There was another boy, but his eyes were kind. He was holding out his hand with a smile. Armin looked behind him, and there was a girl with a scarf,  
>and she had strange eyes and skin.<p>

"I'm Eren, and that's Mikasa." The boy said, "You gonna sit there all day?"

Armin gratefully accepted the hand and Eren pulled him up.

Eren had scratches all over his arms, legs, and face, some new and some old. Most of them where little, but he had a banage on his left cheek, and blood was leaking  
>though. Mikasa, however, was the opposite, but Armin could only see the top half of her face.<p>

"Thanks. I'm Armin..."

He tucked his chin behind the book bashfully, and stood there shuffling his feet, not sure of what to say.

"Why didn't you fight back?" Eren was suddenly in his face. Armin jumped back.

"I-I...they're older and bigger than me..." His voice was quiet.

"So? You need to tell them who's boss! Don't let jerks like them push you around." Eren frowned, then eyed Armin's book with interest.

"What's that? A book? Where'd you get it?" He asked excitedly, and plucked it out of Armin's loose grip.

"Hey! Be careful with that! It's my grandfathers! He owns the library by the back gates." The small boy tried to grab his precious volume back, but Eren laughed and ran  
>away with it.<p>

"Eren." Mikasa warned, and she took a step forward. Armin was scared out of his mind, and he instantly froze, but Eren just laughed.

"Okay. Here, you can have your book back."

Armin smiled nervously and took it from his hands.

"Thank you...again..." He paused for a moment, then asked, "Why did you help me?"

Eren's smile faded away and he turned to the other boy.

"Because you always need to beat the big guys. You can't let them beat you, or they own you. You have to win. But sometimes you need some help."

Eren smiled and held out his hand again.

"My mom's the best cook in all of Wall Maria!" He boasted, "Do you want to come over for dinner?"

Armin nodded, and again he took this boy's hand.

...

.

...

**A/N; Oh, the irony in that last sentence. Anyways, I love Attack on Titian, and I've always wondered excatly how Armin, Eren, and Mikasa met, so I wrote this! :D**  
><strong>Yaay! :3 I actually wrote this during school, lol. If I misspelled anything, please forgive me!<strong>

**I hoped you liked it, and please leave a review! Reviews are health points and I'm running low.**

**~whovianfangirl**

**11/10/14**


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